April 30, 2026
Mental Knowledge, Psychic Knowledge and Faith
reference: Sri Aurobindo and the Mother, The Psychic Being — Soul: Its Nature, Mission and Evolution, Section 1 Meaning and Nature of the Psychic Being, pp. 43-44This episode is also available as a blog post at https://sriaurobindostudies.wordpress.com/2026/04/28/mental-knowledge-psychic-knowledge-and-faith/
Video presentations, interviews and podcast episodes are allavailable on the YouTube Channel https://www.youtube.com/@santoshkrinsky871
More information about Sri Aurobindo can be found at www.aurobindo.net
The US editions and links to e-book editions of SriAurobindo’s writings can be found at Lotus Press www.lotuspress.com
#Sri Aurobindo #The Mother #yoga #integral yoga #spirituality #knowledge #soul #psychic being #faith
1
00:00:00,680 --> 00:00:04,520
We tend to believe that mental
knowledge is based in fact and
2
00:00:04,520 --> 00:00:09,880
is certifiable and reproducible,
whereas knowledge based in faith
3
00:00:09,880 --> 00:00:14,200
is considered to be unreliable
or possibly wishful thinking of
4
00:00:14,200 --> 00:00:17,680
some sort.
Our certainty about our mental
5
00:00:17,680 --> 00:00:20,400
knowledge, however, is based
heavily on faith.
6
00:00:21,200 --> 00:00:25,160
We believe on faith that our
perceptions are accurate.
7
00:00:26,040 --> 00:00:29,200
On deeper review, we can see
that we frequently mistake the
8
00:00:29,200 --> 00:00:33,960
accuracy or validity of what we
perceive based on a number of
9
00:00:33,960 --> 00:00:38,760
factors including
misinterpretation, falsehood
10
00:00:38,760 --> 00:00:44,000
staged and presented to us as
truth, manipulated data, and the
11
00:00:44,000 --> 00:00:48,440
filtering process due to our
education, past experience,
12
00:00:48,880 --> 00:00:54,000
biases, societal norms, and
expectations and prejudices.
13
00:00:55,160 --> 00:00:59,720
With the advent of Photoshop and
AI in the digital realm, we are
14
00:00:59,720 --> 00:01:02,640
learning that we can trust
almost nothing of what we see or
15
00:01:02,640 --> 00:01:06,360
hear.
Even the major AI engines are
16
00:01:06,360 --> 00:01:10,800
known to hallucinate things,
make up false references or
17
00:01:10,800 --> 00:01:13,920
quotes, and respond based on
biases.
18
00:01:13,920 --> 00:01:17,800
Built into the way the AI
engines interpret the data they
19
00:01:17,800 --> 00:01:22,080
are looking at, we can recognize
limitations of the mental
20
00:01:22,080 --> 00:01:27,120
process and the faith required
to rely on it by looking at the
21
00:01:27,120 --> 00:01:31,960
errors, omissions, and
falsifications that would occur
22
00:01:31,960 --> 00:01:35,640
if we were to rely on AI without
further verification.
23
00:01:36,520 --> 00:01:40,600
When our mental process
concludes something, we tend not
24
00:01:40,600 --> 00:01:44,360
to question it, and thus it is a
matter of faith.
25
00:01:44,440 --> 00:01:50,040
That is, however, I'll placed
when we turn to the question of
26
00:01:50,040 --> 00:01:53,120
psychic knowledge, we
acknowledge that faith in what
27
00:01:53,120 --> 00:01:57,000
we know and experience is an
essential part of the process.
28
00:01:57,720 --> 00:02:01,400
The faith that we ordinarily
attribute to religious beliefs
29
00:02:01,400 --> 00:02:06,280
is essentially grounded in the
mental process and thus subject
30
00:02:06,280 --> 00:02:08,680
to the same kind of failures
noted above.
31
00:02:09,960 --> 00:02:12,720
The faith that is vested in the
psychic knowledge is of a
32
00:02:12,720 --> 00:02:16,120
different character.
Rather than being based in the
33
00:02:16,120 --> 00:02:19,320
mental process, psychic
knowledge is something that
34
00:02:19,320 --> 00:02:23,640
carries with it the certainty
based on the existential force
35
00:02:23,640 --> 00:02:25,680
of what comes to us in that
manner.
36
00:02:26,720 --> 00:02:30,920
Just as animals in the vital
world instinctively know what to
37
00:02:30,920 --> 00:02:36,120
do and how to do it, just as our
bodies know how to operate their
38
00:02:36,120 --> 00:02:40,280
own functions without mental
input, there are certain
39
00:02:40,280 --> 00:02:45,360
experiences and intuitions that
come to an individual that are
40
00:02:45,360 --> 00:02:47,600
self-evident truths of
existence.
41
00:02:48,560 --> 00:02:52,520
They come with such a force of
rightness that the individual
42
00:02:52,520 --> 00:02:54,680
simply accepts them for what
they are.
43
00:02:55,480 --> 00:02:59,480
The vibrational pattern,
independent of our biases,
44
00:02:59,720 --> 00:03:05,600
prejudices, interpretations,
conclusions, analysis, or even
45
00:03:05,600 --> 00:03:10,200
the perceptions of the senses,
carries its own veracity with
46
00:03:10,200 --> 00:03:14,040
it.
Paramahan's Yogananda, in his
47
00:03:14,040 --> 00:03:18,920
autobiography of a Yogi, relates
how he recognized his guru when
48
00:03:18,920 --> 00:03:21,080
he met him in person the first
time.
49
00:03:22,000 --> 00:03:25,800
There was no doubt in his mind
and the connection was
50
00:03:25,800 --> 00:03:30,680
immediate, deep and turned out
to last without any break or
51
00:03:30,680 --> 00:03:34,600
disruption.
He had an experience at the
52
00:03:34,600 --> 00:03:38,000
psychic level that told him a
truth that his logical mind
53
00:03:38,000 --> 00:03:42,000
could not have accepted without
a lot of review and
54
00:03:42,000 --> 00:03:46,320
consideration.
The mother writes quote.
55
00:03:47,240 --> 00:03:50,440
The perception of the exterior
consciousness may deny the
56
00:03:50,440 --> 00:03:54,120
perception of the psychic, but
the psychic has the true
57
00:03:54,120 --> 00:03:57,080
knowledge, an intuitive
instinctive knowledge.
58
00:03:57,600 --> 00:04:03,440
It says I know I cannot give
reasons, but I know for its
59
00:04:03,440 --> 00:04:08,240
knowledge is not mental based on
experience or prove true.
60
00:04:08,880 --> 00:04:11,680
It does not believe after proofs
are given.
61
00:04:12,080 --> 00:04:15,400
Faith is the movement of the
soul, whose knowledge is
62
00:04:15,400 --> 00:04:19,839
spontaneous and direct.
Even if the whole world denies
63
00:04:19,839 --> 00:04:25,040
and brings forward 1000 proofs
to the contrary, still it knows
64
00:04:25,040 --> 00:04:29,520
by an inner knowledge, a direct
perception that can stand
65
00:04:29,520 --> 00:04:33,560
against everything, a perception
by identity.
66
00:04:34,440 --> 00:04:37,520
The knowledge of the psychic is
something which is concrete and
67
00:04:37,520 --> 00:04:41,840
tangible, a solid mass.
You can also bring it into your
68
00:04:41,840 --> 00:04:44,200
mental, your vital and your
physical.
69
00:04:44,800 --> 00:04:49,160
And then you have an integral
faith, a faith which can really
70
00:04:49,160 --> 00:04:52,560
move mountains.
But nothing in the being must
71
00:04:52,560 --> 00:04:58,160
come and say it is not like
that, or ask for a test by the
72
00:04:58,160 --> 00:05:02,160
least half.
Belief you spoil matters.
73
00:05:02,880 --> 00:05:06,480
How can the supreme manifest if
faith is not integral and
74
00:05:06,480 --> 00:05:10,040
immovable?
Faith in itself is always
75
00:05:10,040 --> 00:05:13,480
unshakable.
That is its very nature, for
76
00:05:13,480 --> 00:05:16,040
otherwise it is not faith at
all.
77
00:05:16,960 --> 00:05:20,200
But it may happen that the mind
or vital or the physical does
78
00:05:20,200 --> 00:05:24,840
not follow the psychic movement.
A man can come to a Yogi and
79
00:05:24,840 --> 00:05:27,720
have a sudden faith that this
person will lead him to his
80
00:05:27,720 --> 00:05:30,400
goal.
He does not know whether the
81
00:05:30,400 --> 00:05:35,040
person has knowledge or not.
He feels a psychic shock and
82
00:05:35,040 --> 00:05:37,200
knows that he has met his
master.
83
00:05:37,840 --> 00:05:41,320
He does not believe after long
consideration or seeing many
84
00:05:41,320 --> 00:05:45,680
miracles, and this is the only
kind of faith worthwhile.
85
00:05:46,320 --> 00:05:49,520
You will always miss your
destiny if you start arguing.
86
00:05:50,280 --> 00:05:53,200
Some people sit down and
consider whether the psychic
87
00:05:53,200 --> 00:05:57,600
impulse is reasonable or not.
End Quote.
88
00:05:58,680 --> 00:06:03,720
Reference Sri Aurobindo and the
Mother, The psychic being soul,
89
00:06:03,720 --> 00:06:06,000
its nature, Mission and
evolution.
90
00:06:06,440 --> 00:06:08,840
Section 1.
Meaning and Nature of the
91
00:06:08,840 --> 00:06:12,360
Psychic Being, pages 43 to 44.
00:00:00,680 --> 00:00:04,520
We tend to believe that mental
knowledge is based in fact and
2
00:00:04,520 --> 00:00:09,880
is certifiable and reproducible,
whereas knowledge based in faith
3
00:00:09,880 --> 00:00:14,200
is considered to be unreliable
or possibly wishful thinking of
4
00:00:14,200 --> 00:00:17,680
some sort.
Our certainty about our mental
5
00:00:17,680 --> 00:00:20,400
knowledge, however, is based
heavily on faith.
6
00:00:21,200 --> 00:00:25,160
We believe on faith that our
perceptions are accurate.
7
00:00:26,040 --> 00:00:29,200
On deeper review, we can see
that we frequently mistake the
8
00:00:29,200 --> 00:00:33,960
accuracy or validity of what we
perceive based on a number of
9
00:00:33,960 --> 00:00:38,760
factors including
misinterpretation, falsehood
10
00:00:38,760 --> 00:00:44,000
staged and presented to us as
truth, manipulated data, and the
11
00:00:44,000 --> 00:00:48,440
filtering process due to our
education, past experience,
12
00:00:48,880 --> 00:00:54,000
biases, societal norms, and
expectations and prejudices.
13
00:00:55,160 --> 00:00:59,720
With the advent of Photoshop and
AI in the digital realm, we are
14
00:00:59,720 --> 00:01:02,640
learning that we can trust
almost nothing of what we see or
15
00:01:02,640 --> 00:01:06,360
hear.
Even the major AI engines are
16
00:01:06,360 --> 00:01:10,800
known to hallucinate things,
make up false references or
17
00:01:10,800 --> 00:01:13,920
quotes, and respond based on
biases.
18
00:01:13,920 --> 00:01:17,800
Built into the way the AI
engines interpret the data they
19
00:01:17,800 --> 00:01:22,080
are looking at, we can recognize
limitations of the mental
20
00:01:22,080 --> 00:01:27,120
process and the faith required
to rely on it by looking at the
21
00:01:27,120 --> 00:01:31,960
errors, omissions, and
falsifications that would occur
22
00:01:31,960 --> 00:01:35,640
if we were to rely on AI without
further verification.
23
00:01:36,520 --> 00:01:40,600
When our mental process
concludes something, we tend not
24
00:01:40,600 --> 00:01:44,360
to question it, and thus it is a
matter of faith.
25
00:01:44,440 --> 00:01:50,040
That is, however, I'll placed
when we turn to the question of
26
00:01:50,040 --> 00:01:53,120
psychic knowledge, we
acknowledge that faith in what
27
00:01:53,120 --> 00:01:57,000
we know and experience is an
essential part of the process.
28
00:01:57,720 --> 00:02:01,400
The faith that we ordinarily
attribute to religious beliefs
29
00:02:01,400 --> 00:02:06,280
is essentially grounded in the
mental process and thus subject
30
00:02:06,280 --> 00:02:08,680
to the same kind of failures
noted above.
31
00:02:09,960 --> 00:02:12,720
The faith that is vested in the
psychic knowledge is of a
32
00:02:12,720 --> 00:02:16,120
different character.
Rather than being based in the
33
00:02:16,120 --> 00:02:19,320
mental process, psychic
knowledge is something that
34
00:02:19,320 --> 00:02:23,640
carries with it the certainty
based on the existential force
35
00:02:23,640 --> 00:02:25,680
of what comes to us in that
manner.
36
00:02:26,720 --> 00:02:30,920
Just as animals in the vital
world instinctively know what to
37
00:02:30,920 --> 00:02:36,120
do and how to do it, just as our
bodies know how to operate their
38
00:02:36,120 --> 00:02:40,280
own functions without mental
input, there are certain
39
00:02:40,280 --> 00:02:45,360
experiences and intuitions that
come to an individual that are
40
00:02:45,360 --> 00:02:47,600
self-evident truths of
existence.
41
00:02:48,560 --> 00:02:52,520
They come with such a force of
rightness that the individual
42
00:02:52,520 --> 00:02:54,680
simply accepts them for what
they are.
43
00:02:55,480 --> 00:02:59,480
The vibrational pattern,
independent of our biases,
44
00:02:59,720 --> 00:03:05,600
prejudices, interpretations,
conclusions, analysis, or even
45
00:03:05,600 --> 00:03:10,200
the perceptions of the senses,
carries its own veracity with
46
00:03:10,200 --> 00:03:14,040
it.
Paramahan's Yogananda, in his
47
00:03:14,040 --> 00:03:18,920
autobiography of a Yogi, relates
how he recognized his guru when
48
00:03:18,920 --> 00:03:21,080
he met him in person the first
time.
49
00:03:22,000 --> 00:03:25,800
There was no doubt in his mind
and the connection was
50
00:03:25,800 --> 00:03:30,680
immediate, deep and turned out
to last without any break or
51
00:03:30,680 --> 00:03:34,600
disruption.
He had an experience at the
52
00:03:34,600 --> 00:03:38,000
psychic level that told him a
truth that his logical mind
53
00:03:38,000 --> 00:03:42,000
could not have accepted without
a lot of review and
54
00:03:42,000 --> 00:03:46,320
consideration.
The mother writes quote.
55
00:03:47,240 --> 00:03:50,440
The perception of the exterior
consciousness may deny the
56
00:03:50,440 --> 00:03:54,120
perception of the psychic, but
the psychic has the true
57
00:03:54,120 --> 00:03:57,080
knowledge, an intuitive
instinctive knowledge.
58
00:03:57,600 --> 00:04:03,440
It says I know I cannot give
reasons, but I know for its
59
00:04:03,440 --> 00:04:08,240
knowledge is not mental based on
experience or prove true.
60
00:04:08,880 --> 00:04:11,680
It does not believe after proofs
are given.
61
00:04:12,080 --> 00:04:15,400
Faith is the movement of the
soul, whose knowledge is
62
00:04:15,400 --> 00:04:19,839
spontaneous and direct.
Even if the whole world denies
63
00:04:19,839 --> 00:04:25,040
and brings forward 1000 proofs
to the contrary, still it knows
64
00:04:25,040 --> 00:04:29,520
by an inner knowledge, a direct
perception that can stand
65
00:04:29,520 --> 00:04:33,560
against everything, a perception
by identity.
66
00:04:34,440 --> 00:04:37,520
The knowledge of the psychic is
something which is concrete and
67
00:04:37,520 --> 00:04:41,840
tangible, a solid mass.
You can also bring it into your
68
00:04:41,840 --> 00:04:44,200
mental, your vital and your
physical.
69
00:04:44,800 --> 00:04:49,160
And then you have an integral
faith, a faith which can really
70
00:04:49,160 --> 00:04:52,560
move mountains.
But nothing in the being must
71
00:04:52,560 --> 00:04:58,160
come and say it is not like
that, or ask for a test by the
72
00:04:58,160 --> 00:05:02,160
least half.
Belief you spoil matters.
73
00:05:02,880 --> 00:05:06,480
How can the supreme manifest if
faith is not integral and
74
00:05:06,480 --> 00:05:10,040
immovable?
Faith in itself is always
75
00:05:10,040 --> 00:05:13,480
unshakable.
That is its very nature, for
76
00:05:13,480 --> 00:05:16,040
otherwise it is not faith at
all.
77
00:05:16,960 --> 00:05:20,200
But it may happen that the mind
or vital or the physical does
78
00:05:20,200 --> 00:05:24,840
not follow the psychic movement.
A man can come to a Yogi and
79
00:05:24,840 --> 00:05:27,720
have a sudden faith that this
person will lead him to his
80
00:05:27,720 --> 00:05:30,400
goal.
He does not know whether the
81
00:05:30,400 --> 00:05:35,040
person has knowledge or not.
He feels a psychic shock and
82
00:05:35,040 --> 00:05:37,200
knows that he has met his
master.
83
00:05:37,840 --> 00:05:41,320
He does not believe after long
consideration or seeing many
84
00:05:41,320 --> 00:05:45,680
miracles, and this is the only
kind of faith worthwhile.
85
00:05:46,320 --> 00:05:49,520
You will always miss your
destiny if you start arguing.
86
00:05:50,280 --> 00:05:53,200
Some people sit down and
consider whether the psychic
87
00:05:53,200 --> 00:05:57,600
impulse is reasonable or not.
End Quote.
88
00:05:58,680 --> 00:06:03,720
Reference Sri Aurobindo and the
Mother, The psychic being soul,
89
00:06:03,720 --> 00:06:06,000
its nature, Mission and
evolution.
90
00:06:06,440 --> 00:06:08,840
Section 1.
Meaning and Nature of the
91
00:06:08,840 --> 00:06:12,360
Psychic Being, pages 43 to 44.
